Marking apparatus



March 11, 1952 EREKSON 2,588,374

MARKING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 29, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.M/7f'0rd A Elva/(6'00 ATTORNEY Ma 1952 M. A. ERICKSON MARKING APPARATUS4 SheetsSheet 2 Filed Jan. 29, 1946 k W m m4 XWA M, a m: M M i 2 H 3 2 26 A 4 L i W/ 9* T M 1L 0 O 2 J j m Z M: .fi Mr m w 8 F w .fl 3 A March1], I952 A A M. A. E-I-QICKSON 7 0 2,588,374

MARKING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 29, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 V EN TOR. I Ai/ford A r/6X60 March 11, 1952 M. A. ERICKSON 2,588,374

MARKING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 29, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTUPA f)Patented Mar. 11, 1952 UNITED STATES. PATENT OFFICE MARKING; APPARATUSMilford A. Erickson, Denver, Colo.

Application January 29, 1946', SerialNo. 644,023

11 Claims.

This. invention relates to marking apparatus,

article of clothing. Many times, a. considerable,

number of articles will receive the. same. identification mark, and itis often a laborious process. to Write such marks. on the. pieces. oftape. In laundries, it is customary to place identification marks uponclothing by hand, or by a machine which may be set to print a desiredmark directly on the article. However, in the case of dark coloredarticles upon which ink will not. show to advantage, it is necessary toplace, the identificar tion mark upon a separate piece of White or lighttape, and then staple the tape to the article. Previous machines,developed for printing identification marks on laundry or other articlesthus leave much to be. desired; since such machines cannot be used forclothing or the like, as in dry cleaning establishments, or for darkcolored clothing or the like in laundries.

Among the objects of this invention areto providean improved. apparatusfor printing identification marks; to. provide such apparatus. whichwill, print an identification mark, on apiece of. tape andsimultaneously attach the tape to an, article of clothing or the like;to provide such.

apparatus which can also be. used for printing identification marksdirectly on laundry or other articles; to provide such apparatus whichwill.

print the same mark on, one. or any number of articles, or alternativelyattach. an identically marked pieceof tape to any number of articlesinsuecession; to. nrovidesuch apparatus which is relatively simple inconstruction, yet quick and effective in operation; to provide suchapparatus which may readily be converted from printing onandsjmultaneously attachinga piece of tape to an article, to printingan; identification mark directly on the article; and to provide suchapparatus which will be relatively cheap to construct: and. requireslittle, skill on; the part; of an operator. of thisinvention will becomeapparent from the description which follows;

Marking apparatus constructed in accordance witri this invention may.comprise means: for supplyinga piececf tapeor the like, means: for

Other objects: and the novel features printing indicating marks on thepiece of tape,.

meansfor attaching, the piece of tape to, an

article of clothing or the. like, and manually operated means foractuating the tape supplying, printing, and attaching means. Suchapparatus may also include means for supplying a continuous tape or thelike, and. means for severing the tape at a predetermined point. toprovide a piece of tape to be attached to. an article of clothing orthe-like, suchmeans desirably being operable by a manually actuated arm.which also may carry portions of the attaching. means and the printingmeans. The printing means may fur.- ther include. indicia means providedwith. type characters, selectively movable to different positions toprovide. diiierent combinations oiletters, numbers, or the. like. Theapparatus mayalso include means for rendering, the tape feeding meansinoperative, when the indicating mark. is

to be printed directly on an articleoi clothingor the like. Additionalfeatures are included in the embodiment illustrated in the accompanying.drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a vertical section of apparatus constructed in accordance withthis invention, taken along, line I-l of Fig. 2;

,Fig. 2. is a front elevation of the apparatus of Fig. 1;.

Fig. 3, is a lateral vertical. section taken along: line 3-3 of Fig, 1;

Fig. 4. is. an enlarged partial vertical section takenalong line 1-4 of.Fig. 2

Fig, 5 is an enlarged vertical section similar to-la'ig. 3, but takenalong line l-l of Fig. 21 and witheertain. parts in a differentposition;

Fig. 6; is a front, elevation, on an enlarged.

scale, of a portion. of the apparatus taken from a.

positionalong line 6-6 of vllig. 1;

, Fig. 7. is a vertical. section, on a further enlarged scale, takenalong line 1-1 of Fig. 6; and Fig. 8.15, a horizontal section, also on afurther enlarged scale, taken along line. 8-8. of Fig. 6. Asillustratedv in Figs. 1. and 2. of. the drawings,

apparatus constructed. in accordance with this.

invention may include a housing H, in the upper portion of which isinstalled indiciameans.

ous-combinations of letters and numerals which.-

may be used to permit-I almost any desired indicating mark tobesproduced. The typewheels H1 The. indicia means. includes a pluralityof. circularv type wheels I0, provided with raised teeth. ll around, theperiphery thereof, each tooth II carrying a letter, numeral, or otherraised type Any number of type wheels, such as" are rotatably mounted ona shaft I2, in turn supported at its ends by side walls I3 of housing H,and extending through the sides of a semi-cylindrical housing sectionI4. Housing section I4 encloses type wheels I9, and is provided with anaperture or opening I5 adapted to expose one row of teeth II, carryingthe type characters for the particular mark to be printed.

Each type wheel I0 is movable by an intermediate gear IE to a suitableposition, as to produce the desired combination of letters or numbers bythe teeth H exposed in opening I5, and each intermediate gear I6 isformed integrally with or attached to a pinion I1. In turn, each pinionI1 is movable by a quadrant rack I8, pivotal on a shaft I9 with theteeth of each rack meshing with the teeth of the corresponding pinion,and each rack is movable to a desired position by an adjusting lever 29which extends through a slot 2| in a semi-circular upper section 22 ofhousing H, as in Fig. 2.

An indicating scale, provided with letters and/or numbers identical withthose on the corresponding type wheel Ii), is preferably providedalongside each slot 2!, so that the operator need only move a lever 29to a position corresponding to the desired character, and the tooth IIprovided with such character will be moved to a position coinciding withopening I5. To hold the type wheels I0 and racks I9 in the desiredpositions, a spring 23 may be attached to housing I-I adjacent eachintermediate gear IS, the free end of each spring engaging the teeth ofthe corresponding intermediate gear I6, as in Fig. 1.

,After the type wheels are set to produce the desired indicating mark inthe above manner, an operating arm A is moved forwardly by the operator,a portion 24 of the article of clothing to which the printed piece oftape is to be attached, as in Fig. 1, being placed over a staple supplydevice 25 and further supported by handles 25 of arm A. Staple supplydevice 25 is removably mounted on arm A, as in Figs. 1 and 4, being heldby a spring 21 in a well 28, formed in the upper end of the arm. Arm Ais pivotally mounted at its lower end on a pin 29, mounted in bosseswhich extend upwardly from base 3I of housing H, and arm A is alsoprovided with a stop 32 at its lower end, to limit rearward movement ofthe arm to the position of Figs. 1 and 4.

As arm A is moved forwardly, an inking pad 33, which is preferablyformed of a suitable fibrous material saturated with and adapted toretain for a considerable period a supply of a suitable marking ink, ismoved into engagement with the teeth II which are exposed in opening i5.Inking pad 33 is wedged in a slot, or otherwise suitably attached to theupper end of an arm 34, pivoted at its lower end on a pin 35 extendinglaterally between a pair of levers 36 and 31, as in Figs. 1 and 4.Levers 36 and 31 are, in turn, pivotally mounted at their rear ends onarms 38 which extend outwardly and upwardly from the lower portion ofarm A, so as to move levers 35 and 31 and arm 34 forwardly in a directmovement to cause inking pad 33 to engage the type characters on teeth II. Arm 34 is maintained in position during such forward movement by acoil spring 39 which encircles pin 35, as in Fig. 3, the ends of thespring engaging levers 36 and 31 and wardly and downwardly, after inkingand during further forward movement of arm A, when an abutment section Mof arm 34 engages a cam section 42 of housing section I4 beneath a tapesevering or cut off means S, described in detail later. Arm 34 is alsoprovided with an outwardly curved section 43 which permits the inkingpad 33 to clear the tape severing means S, as during movement from theposition of Fig. 4 to the position of Fig. 5. During such movement, theabutment section 4| causes inking pad 33 to move away from teeth I I,then downwardly and around the tape severing means S, to anunobstructing position, as in Fig. 5, in which the inking pad will notinterfere with the operation of a stamping or pressure pad 44, mountedon arm A. Pressure pad 44 is formed of rubber or the like, and is movedI into engagement with the piece of tape or article of clothing, onwhich the indicating mark is to be printed, to press the piece of tapeor article against the indicia or type characters previously inked bypad 33.

During forward movement of arm A, as inking pad 33 begins to move awayfrom the opening I5, ratchet teeth 45, formed on the lower side of lever33, as in Fig. l, engage the teeth of ratchet wheel 43 to turn a roller41, ratchet wheel 46 and roller 41 being mounted on and attached to ashaft 48. Roller 41 is adapted to feed the end of the tape acrossopening l5 and into position for printing, attachment to the article ofclothing, and severing of the attached piece of tape by severing meansS. As will be evident, the smooth portion of the underside of lever 38slides over the teeth of ratchet wheel 46, so that the first tooth 45does not engage ratchet wheel 46 until the inking pad 33 has moved outof the way of the tape, which begins to move upwardly only as soon asthe roller 41 begins to turn. On rearward movement of arm A, teeth 45 oflever 36 merely slide over ratchet wheel 46, without moving roller 41 ineither direction.

The tape T is supplied from a roll 49, mounted in a suitable position,as on a shaft 59 beneath racks I8, the tape being pulled from roll 49 bydriving roller 41, the tape being pressed against roller 41 by an idleror pressure roller 5|. The latter is mounted for rotation on two arms 52which are pivotally mounted on a pin 53 and extend to the opposite sideof the pin for attachment of the upper end of springs 54, the lower endsof which are attached to base 3!. A hook 55 may be attached to one ofarms 52, and a cooperating latch 56 attached to base 3|, so thatpressure roller 5I may be locked in a down position, such as the dottedposition of Fig. 4. Arms 52 are further provided with a U-strip 51,extending between the arms and above the tape T, so that when the roller5I is locked in the down position, strip 51 will pull the tape T awayfrom driving roller 41, thereby insuring that the tape the center of thespring engaging arm 34, as in Fig. 3, so as to urge an abutment 40a onarm 34 against a stop bar 49 extending between levers 36 and 31, as inFigs. 2 and 4.

Spring 39 also permits arm 34 to pivot rearsupply means will be renderedinoperative, as when the indicating marks are to be printed directly onan article of clothing or the like. Levers 36 and 31 are guided duringmovement by a lateral bar 58 having depending guide legs 59. As will beevident, as soon as abutment section M of arm 34 engages cam section 42,levers 36 and 31 are pressed downwardly, so that legs 59 act as lateralguides. Bar 58, however, prevents levers 36 and 31. from rising too highat any time.

The end of the tape is preferably moved across opening I5 and upwardlyto a point just beyond a staple closing anvil 60, mounted on or formedintegrally with housing section I4 on the opposite side; of: openingsl5: from the tape: sever n means. Si. Anviluimis rovidedlwithta.ossr'sl. 6; I of conventional 2 hane; so that: scthez' arm movesza; tothe; position: 031 Fig. 5; the: staple. pu hed. through the port on; 24of." he rticl lothineyorrthe like; and also; thrcu hr hezp ce;

anaemofit peiand the: ends of the stap1earei-c sed:.byi

'llheiltape. is, guidedina slot 64,; shown, more I clearly; in; Figs."7: a-nd58, the slot being formed be tweenthe-exterior of; housingsection I41 and: a;

6? tendin w nn ucedi Pressure; i-t t naflhi ma be a dtdt eu n 6 11. ri.5. 85,8 annenas-by brazing;orlsoldering; or; y crews or the like. Or,in 'the,event thatstnp; 65 is made of material susceptible; thereto,the; upper endyof; the strip maybelocally hardened, as by -"1 lame or,induction. hardening; so that the wear blockmay -be eliminated.Norma1ly,; there I will belittle 'wear'on shearing-edge 12, since,the;

Hli

curved strip 55-.=ha ving side flanges 66: towprovide;

an .-interier-groove, although slot 64 may be: pro-. videdby flanges onhousing isection I 4, oron;

both'lhousing section I4 and strip 65., Further--- more suitable; shimsor spacing. strips-maybe; utilizedqinlieutof flanges 56;, Strip a andhousing, section I 4 may alsobe; provided. with cor-. responding, earsfill-bytwhichthe strip 65 is a.t.

tached to housing section l4, as by cap screws. as

It, will: be understood, of course, that;' strip; 651 may be attached tohousing section l,4

shown.

in: any other suitable manner, as: by welding,

brazing-or therlike An. upperguide block. 68gistape isycutrather-readily; by the knife, but alwear. bloelev o1" localizedhardening may. be utilized to; provide; allcnger wearing edge, ifdesired.

Whenthe indicating ma k-z isyto be printed. di rectlysor 1: the.=article of clothing, such; as in laundryorthelike, the; staple supplydevice isrernoved frornarm A, and the portion oi the: article; on which,they indicating marl; is to; be printed placedover: stamping pad 44;.Also, hoole 5 Sr QCkB in: la h, s h t he p nres 1 sure; ro1ler= 5| ismoved, downwardly and strip, 5.!T

i moved forwardly, to; the dotted positions of s; Figle, so as: to movethetape away from rollerE 41, and eliminate the possibility of thetapeacci-.v

. dentallybeingfed during thexnarkingoperation.

similarly provided, with flanges to; form ,a; groovetoPmMidea slotforrguiding thetape'll, and block, 58- is :provided with, cars 65,. ormay otherwise besuitably: attached;- to housingsection l4, asin the;-

sameamanneras strip; 6.5 Also, if. desired; upper,

guide block 68 may be formed integrally with;

housin section M. Strip 65 alsomay be formed with cam-section 42.against which theabutment;

sectionMof arm 34rides. as arm 34, is, moved].

fromthe inking position :of Fig. 4 toqthe, unob--structing-position-01mg. 5. A tail piece 69 mayt extend, down to a.point adiacent. taperoller, 41,,

andmay-be formedin two.halvesseparatelvfroln strip 65. and: housingsection l4 and attachedthereto; or formed half as a. continuation of,strip.

65. with the, other half, attached thereto.

The, tapes severing: means, S is illustrated in, greater detail in, Figsfi to 8, inclusive; and is,

mounted between theupper end of strip. 65 and;

block 68, ,a slot Tlibeing provided inhousing section, M to accommodatemovement. of knife-62,;

Asini'ig. 8, knifefiz is provided with laterally;

inclinedsharpened edges H, so that the, center.

of the tapeis first punctured, and the cutting op.-

erationproceeds from thecenten out to; the-ledges Qf: th -tap. e a -terin m ed. ainst the: lower lateral edge 12 of; slotlfl; which acts. asas;

shearing edgeduring the cutting operation. The clinaticnof the.cuttingedge. of t e k produ s. a. cleaner. and faster: sh arin opera ionsevering means 5 also. includes a; bowed; l af: spring, 13;,the endaofwhich press knife. 6,2..downr wardly-l. to insure; thatthe knife will.move. aceti retelsi d rin utting. Apa r. q f a i sprin smove:the-rlsnifieback to; the .position of Figs:- 4 l and 7. after. cutting,and. are attachedattheiri lowe endsstmstripfia asain-,,6i whilethuppenends thereofgextend hrwehslots '1 5. in:;kni;fe cheer-in; Fig.7.

A. wear: block; 7-6; iormed g of: hard olwhardened znetallfor more;adequately: resistineratheahrasiop e As'wi-ll' b e -evident-, whenthe-arm, A, is moved; forward under such; conditions, the inking pad- 33will inkthe-type characters as: before; but the, articfe oflclothing; orr the like will bepressed intoen a ement with the inked; typecharactersvhy;

; stamping pad 44. Also, though the-knife-Ei' will:

be actuated by abutment. 6 3, no tape-wiill beqcut off, since it willnotbe fed by driving; roller 41,; while-the absence of staplesupply=devicel5peer-1 vents a staple being inserted inlthe. article;After printing inthe abovemanner; arm A is moved rearwardln and the:printed articlerep-laced ,by;

t a ext article; t e.- n icia mea s g; ad justed for the next articleflif; necessary, beiora the, next forward movement. of arm A. As will I beevident, the conversion of the apparatus cf this;

invention to perform tape marking; andrattaching operations, to;article-' marking. operations without; tape; isvery; simple,Furthermore, when it. is: desiredto resume he tape marking. and;

, attaching operations. such operations: can; againbe.:carried,.utaspreviously described.

Erom.-the foregoing it. will; be apparent; that e: apparatus; ef this nntion lfil s. t a marked degreethe objects and. requirementshereinbeforeset, forth, ll'he combination of manually, operable;actuating; ,means, as exemplifind by; A. ith,-.nr ;nt ne mea s. m nsr pr supplying a: piece: Of' tape, and means for-attaching the piece-bftape; to, an article of, clothing-"or? the like; comprises: avaluablecontribution; of this invention; Also; the; eombinationof, means rsuppiyinga-stripof:tape, or the like, andjmeans: for. cutting; offia,piece of the tapeand at the same time printing: an indicating markand'at.- taching the. piece to, anarticle of clothing. or the like,constitutesian additional. valuable 'contribu-. tion; As; will be;evident; the specific construce tioIr. disclosed is: relatively. simple.in construe.- tionaandoperation; yet: numerous changes are possible;without; changing either the functioning of" the parts or therzmode ofoperation. of the apparatus;

For; instance; thendriving: roller 4] and. ratchet wheel=46 may:beplaced aboveleversand" 31;- with; teetha qn the upper edge-of lever 36,so that the". tail piece 69;. will" extend tangentiallyfromihousing 1[14; instead of at: an acute, angle; as shownia. In. such case, atorsion spring, similar to but stronger than spring 39; may be providedat: the;v pivot-l point of; levers; 361and'1'31 sothat lever 36 will beforced upwardly against ratchet wheel 46. Also, a spring pressed latchmay be provided to prevent ratchet wheel 46 being turned in the wrongdirection by friction, during rearward movement of lever 36.

Knife 62 may be pivoted at one side so as to shear tape T in a mannersimilar to that of a pair of scissors, while abutment 63 on arm A may bepositioned to strike the end of the knife opposite the pivot point. Sucha pivoted knife may be swung to one side, so as to prevent its beingstruck by arm A when the indicating mark is being printed directly on anarticle of clothing or the like. Furthermore, in the embodiment shown,abutment 63 on arm A may be made removable, as by being held on the armby a clip spring,'and/or fitting into a latera1 groove or groovesprovided on the front side of arm A. Staple supply device 25 may also bepivotally mounted on arm A, so as to be swung down to a lower rearposition, when the indicating mark is to be printed directly on anarticle of clothing or the like.

In lieu of spring 23, each rack quadrant [8 may be provided with acircumferential slot adjacent the outer end thereof, the sots in all thequadrants being in lateral alignment and provided with teeth orserrations. An alignment bar may extend laterally through the slots, andbe mounted at its ends on springs, so that each quadrant can be moved ineither direction by lever 20 and the teeth of the slots will move overthe alignment bar, but the racks l 8 will be maintained in any setposition.

Although one embodiment of this invention has been illustrated anddescribed in detail, it will be understood that other embodiments mayexist and that additional changes may be made, all withoutdeparting'from the spirit and scope of this invention.

What is claimed is:

1. Marking apparatus comprising a set of indicia adapted to printindicating marks; means for setting said indicia in desired positions;means for inking said indicia; a pivoted arm carrying means forproducing pressure against said inked indicia to cause said marks to beprinted; a second pivoted arm carrying said inking means; means forsupplying a strip of tape or the like and positioning a portion of saidtape at one end thereof in printing position relative to said inkedindicia; a knife for cutting said tape strip adjacent said indicia;means carried by said first pivoted arm for operating said knife; and alever pivoted at one end on said first pivoted arm for actuating saidtape supply means so as to move the end portion of said tape intoprinting position after inking of said indicia, said second pivoted armbeing pivoted on said lever.

2. In marking apparatus, adjustable indicia means having type charactersfor printing indicating marks; a housing for said indicia means providedwith an opening exposing the characters for a mark to be printed; apivoted arm movable toward and away from said opening; tape supply meansadapted to move a predetermined length of tape toward and across saidopening; tape cutting means disposed on one side of said opening; stapleclosing means disposed on the opposite side of said opening; staplesupply means mounted on said arm in position to move a staple to beclosed against said staple closing means; and means carried by said armfor operatingsaid tape cutting means.

In marking apparatus, adjustable indicia means having type charactersfor printing indicating marks; a housing for said indicia means andprovided with an opening exposing the type characters for the mark to beprinted; a pivoted arm movable toward and away from said opening; tapesupply means adapted to move a predetermined length of tape toward andacross said opening; tape cutting means disposed on one side of-s'aidopening; staple closing means disposed on the opposite side of saidopening; staple supply means mounted on said arm in position to move astaple to be closed against said staple closing means; means carried bysaid arm for operating said tape cutting means; means for inking saidindicia characters and operable by movement of said arm prior toobstruction of said opening by said tape; and means for pressing saidtape against said inked characters.

4. In marking apparatus, adjustable indicia means having type charactersfor printing indicating marks; a housing for said indicia means providedwith an'opening exposing the characters for a mark to be printed; apivoted arm movable toward and away from said opening; tape supply meansadapted to move a predetermined length of tape toward and across saidopening; tape cutting means disposed on one side of said opening; stapleclosing means disposed on the opposite side of said opening; staplesupply means mounted on said arm in position to move a staple to beclosed against said staple closing means; means carried by said arm foroperating said tape cutting means; 'means for inking said indiciacharacters and operable by movement of said arm, said inking means beingcarried by a pivoted arm having a shape to clear said tape cutting meansduring movement to an unobstructing position after inking; and means forpressing said tape against said inked characters.

5. In making apparatus, adjustable indicia means having type charactersfor printing indicating marks; a housing for said indicia means providedwith an opening exposing the characters for a mark to be printed; apivoted arm movable toward and away from said opening; tape supply meansadapted to move a predetermined length of tape toward and across saidopening, said housing being provided with guide slots for said tape;tape cutting means mounted on said housing on one side of said opening;staple closing means mounted on said housing on the opposite side ofsaid opening; staple supply means mounted on said arm in position tomove a staple to be closed against said staple closing means; meanscarried by said arm for operating said tape cutting means; means forinking said indicia characters and operable by movement of said armprior to obstruction of said opening by said tape; and means forpressing said tape against said inked characters.

6. In marking apparatus, adjustable indicia means having type charactersfor printing indic'ating marks; a housing having a base and a sectionfor enclosing said indicia means provided with an opening exposing thetype characters for the mark to be printed; a pivoted arm movable towardand away from said opening and carrying a staple supply device and meansfor producing pressure against inked indicia, said arm being pivoted atits lower end on said base and provided with a stop for limitingrearward movement thereof; a pair of forwardly extending levers pivotedat their rear ends on said arm;

tape supply means adapted to move a predetermined length of tape towardand across said opening; tape cutting means disposed on one side of saidopening; staple closing means disposed on the opposite side of saidopening; means carried by said arm for operating said tape cuttingmeans; a second arm, pivoted on said levers, and carrying means forinking said indicia characters, said second arm having an upperrearwardly curved section to cause said arm to clear said tape cuttingmeans during rearward and downward movement thereof; a cam section onsaid housing and a cooperating abutment section on said second arm formoving said inking means rearwardly and then downwardly to dispose saidsecond arm in an unobstructing position during movement of said pressuremeans into said opening; and a ratchet wheel and cooperating teeth on atleast one lever for actuating said tape supply means so as to move theend portion of said tape into printing and stapling position afterinking of said indicia.

7. In apparatus for marking items of laundry and the like, a frame,indicia means on said frame having type characters for printingindicating marks, tape supply means, rotatable means on the frame forfeeding said tape across the indicia means, means for cutting the tape,a pivoted arm movable toward and away from said indicia means, staplesupply and driving means on said arm, means on said arm for operatingsaid tape cutting means, and means on said arm for pressing the tapeagainst said characters, a pivoted linkage mechanism attached to saidarm for energizing the rotatable tape feeding means, a second armpivotall mounted on said linkage mechanism, and indicia inking means onsaid second arm, said arms and linkage mechanism being arranged forsuccessively inking said characters, feeding said tape across thecharacters, pressing the tape against the inked characters, stapling thetape to the item being marked, and cutting the tape as the first arm ismoved forwardly to contact said indicia means.

8. In apparatus for marking items of laundry and the like, a frame,indicia means rotatably mounted on said frame and havin type charactersfor printing indicating marks, tape supply means, rotatable means on theframe for feeding said tape across the indicia means, means for cuttingthe tape, a pivoted arm movable toward and away from said indicia means,staple supply and driving means on said arm, means on said arm foroperating said tape cutting means, and means on said arm for pressingthe tape against said characters, a pivoted linkage mechanism attachedto said arm for energizing the rotatable tape feeding means, a secondarm pivotally mounted on said linkage mechanism, and indicia inkingmeans on said second arm, said arms and linkage mechanism being arrangedfor successively inking said characters, feeding said tape across thecharacters, pressing the tape against the inked characters, stapling thetape to the item being marked, and cutting the tape as the first arm ismoved forwardly to contact said indicia means.

9. In apparatus for marking items of laundry and the like, a frame,rotatably mounted indicia means on said frame having type characters forprinting indicating marks, tape supply means, rotatable means on theframe for feeding said tape across the indicia means, means for cuttingthe tape, a pivoted arm movable toward and away from said indicia means,means on said arm for pressing the tape against said characters, apivoted linkage mechanism attached to said arm for energizing therotatable tape feeding means, a second arm pivotally mounted on saidlinkage mechanism, and indicia inking means on said second arm, saidarms and linkage mechanism being arranged for successively inking saidcharacters, feeding said tape across the characters, pressing the tapeagainst the inked characters, and cutting the tape as the first arm ismoved forwardly to contact the said indicia means.

10. In apparatus for marking items of laundry and the like, a frame,indicia means on said frame having type characters for printingindicating marks, tape supply means, rotatable means on the frame forfeeding said tape across the indicia means, means for cutting the tape,a pivoted arm movable toward and away from said indicia means, means onsaid arm for operating said tape cutting means, and means on said armfor pressing the tape against said characters, a pivoted linkagemechanism attached to said arm for energizing the rotatable tape feedingmeans, a second arm pivotally mounted on said linkage mechanism, indiciainking means on said second arm, and a cam device mounted on said frameto engage said second arm, said arms and linkage mechanism beingarranged for successively inking said characters, feeding said tapeacross the characters, pressin the tape against the inked characters,and cutting the tape as the first arm is moved forwardly to contact thesaid indicia means.

11. In apparatus for marking items of laundry and the like, a frame,indicia means rotatably mounted on said frame having type characters forprinting indicating marks, a pivoted arm movable toward and away fromsaid indicia means, and means on said arm for pressing against saidcharacters, a second arm pivotally mounted on said linkage mechanism,indicia inking means on said second arm, tape supply means, rotatablemeans on the frame for feeding said tape across the indicia means, meansfor cutting the tape, and means for disengaging said rotatable means forpreventing the feeding of tape, said arms and linkage mechanism beingarranged for succesivel inking said characters, feeding the tape acrossthe characters when the said rotatable means is engaged, and pressingthe tape against the inked characters and cutting the tape as the firstarm is moved forwardly to contact said indicia means.

MILFORD A. ERICKSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the

